Matt Rhule’s comments about Deion Sanders have mostly centered on denying any disrespect while also drawing a contrast between their coaching styles, which many fans interpreted as subtle shade toward Sanders and Colorado.

The “disrespect” and midfield logo moment

In September 2023, after Colorado beat Nebraska in Boulder, Shedeur Sanders accused Rhule and Nebraska of “extreme disrespect” toward Deion Sanders.

  • Shedeur said he took it “extremely personal” that Nebraska gathered on the Buffaloes’ midfield logo and that it felt like a shot at his father and the program.
  • He described it as the whole team trying to disrespect Colorado’s logo and said he “disrupted it” to show how much the Buffaloes mean to him.

Rhule pushed back hard on that idea in the days after the game.

  • He said he has “never disrespected an opponent a day in my life,” emphasizing that what Nebraska did at midfield was a team prayer, not a taunt.
  • Rhule explained that he even invited Colorado to join that prayer, insisting there was no intent to insult Sanders or his team.

Subtle shade on cameras and the transfer portal

Earlier in 2023, fans noticed Rhule making comments that sounded like indirect shots at Deion Sanders’ approach at Colorado.

On a podcast appearance, Rhule contrasted his style with a coach who:

  • Brings cameras into team meetings.
  • Tells players to “jump in the portal” to make room for new guys.

Without naming Sanders, Rhule said in that interview:

  • He doesn’t let cameras follow him around and wants it to “always be the players.”
  • At his first Nebraska team meeting, he told players, “I chose you,” and emphasized he wasn’t walking in telling guys to get in the portal or forcing them out.

Because Sanders had very publicly told inherited Colorado players that he was “bringing Louie” (better talent) and that some should hit the portal, many listeners read Rhule’s remarks as veiled criticism of Deion’s flashier, portal-heavy rebuild.

Later praise for Deion Sanders

At other times, Rhule has gone out of his way to speak respectfully about Sanders and Colorado.

  • He has acknowledged Sanders’ “game‑changing” impact on college football and the way he’s reshaped expectations around the transfer portal and program branding.
  • Before a later Nebraska–Colorado meeting, Rhule avoided adding fuel to the rivalry and instead praised Colorado’s competitive culture, its key offensive players, and the historic nature of the series.

So, if you’re asking “what did Matt Rhule say about Deion Sanders,” the key themes are:

  1. Public denial that he ever tried to disrespect Deion or Colorado, especially around the midfield-logo/prayer incident.
  1. Earlier, indirect contrast between his “no cameras, keep the roster, don’t push players to the portal” philosophy and Sanders’ more dramatic, media-heavy, portal-rebuild style—which many saw as subtle shade.
  1. Occasional explicit praise for Sanders’ broader impact on the sport and avoidance of direct trash talk once the rivalry really heated up.

TL;DR: Rhule has said he never disrespected Deion Sanders and that Nebraska’s controversial midfield moment was just a team prayer, but he has also made indirect comments about cameras and the transfer portal that people widely interpreted as pointed comparisons to Sanders’ approach at Colorado.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.